Articles | Volume 16, issue 3
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-911-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-911-2020
© Author(s) 2020. This work is distributed under
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 License.
Historical droughts in the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) of China
Kuan-Hui Elaine Lin
CORRESPONDING AUTHOR
Graduate Institute of Environmental Education, National Taiwan Normal
University, Taipei, Taiwan
Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, Taipei,
Taiwan
Department of Atmospheric and Oceanic Sciences, University of
Wisconsin–Madison, Madison, Wisconsin, USA
Pi-Ling Pai
Research Center for Humanities and Social Sciences, Academia Sinica,
Taipei, Taiwan
Yu-Shiuan Lin
Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, Taipei,
Taiwan
Chih-Wei Wang
Research Center for Environmental Changes, Academia Sinica, Taipei,
Taiwan
Related authors
Pao K. Wang, Elaine Kuan-Hui Lin, Yu-Shiuan Lin, Chung-Rui Lee, Ho-Jiunn Lin, Ching-Wen Chen, and Pi-Ling Pai
Clim. Past, 20, 1513–1520, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1513-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1513-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We provide detailed translations of some abnormal meteorological conditions in 43–33 BCE described in Chinese historical documents possibly related to the Okmok volcanic eruption in Alaska in early 43 BCE. The cold summer record and the abnormal color and low brightness of the sun point to the clear link to the volcanic impact. The reported duration for the visual condition of the sun to return to normal should be useful for researchers modeling the volcanic impact on climate.
Tzu-Hsin Karen Chen, Kuan-Hui Elaine Lin, Thung-Hong Lin, Gee-Yu Liu, Chin-Hsun Yeh, and Diana Maria Ceballos
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1493, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1493, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study reveals migration patterns as a critical factor in seismic fatalities. Analyzing the Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan, we find that lower income and a higher indigenous population at migrants' origins are correlated with higher fatalities at their destinations. This underscores the need for affordable and safe housing in the outskirts of megacities, where migrants from lower-income and historically marginalized groups are more likely to reside due to precarious employment conditions.
David J. Nash, George C. D. Adamson, Linden Ashcroft, Martin Bauch, Chantal Camenisch, Dagomar Degroot, Joelle Gergis, Adrian Jusopović, Thomas Labbé, Kuan-Hui Elaine Lin, Sharon D. Nicholson, Qing Pei, María del Rosario Prieto, Ursula Rack, Facundo Rojas, and Sam White
Clim. Past, 17, 1273–1314, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1273-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1273-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Qualitative evidence contained within historical sources provides an important record of climate variability for periods prior to the onset of systematic meteorological data collection. Before such evidence can be used for climate reconstructions, it needs to be converted to a quantitative format. A common approach is the generation of ordinal-scale climate indices. This review, written by members of the PAGES CRIAS working group, provides a global synthesis of the use of the index approach.
Pao K. Wang, Elaine Kuan-Hui Lin, Yu-Shiuan Lin, Chung-Rui Lee, Ho-Jiunn Lin, Ching-Wen Chen, and Pi-Ling Pai
Clim. Past, 20, 1513–1520, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1513-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1513-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
We provide detailed translations of some abnormal meteorological conditions in 43–33 BCE described in Chinese historical documents possibly related to the Okmok volcanic eruption in Alaska in early 43 BCE. The cold summer record and the abnormal color and low brightness of the sun point to the clear link to the volcanic impact. The reported duration for the visual condition of the sun to return to normal should be useful for researchers modeling the volcanic impact on climate.
Tzu-Hsin Karen Chen, Kuan-Hui Elaine Lin, Thung-Hong Lin, Gee-Yu Liu, Chin-Hsun Yeh, and Diana Maria Ceballos
EGUsphere, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1493, https://doi.org/10.5194/egusphere-2024-1493, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
This study reveals migration patterns as a critical factor in seismic fatalities. Analyzing the Chi-Chi earthquake in Taiwan, we find that lower income and a higher indigenous population at migrants' origins are correlated with higher fatalities at their destinations. This underscores the need for affordable and safe housing in the outskirts of megacities, where migrants from lower-income and historically marginalized groups are more likely to reside due to precarious employment conditions.
Yu-Wen Chen, Yi-Chun Chen, Charles C.-K. Chou, Hui-Ming Hung, Shih-Yu Chang, Lisa Eirenschmalz, Michael Lichtenstern, Helmut Ziereis, Hans Schlager, Greta Stratmann, Katharina Kaiser, Johannes Schneider, Stephan Borrmann, Florian Obersteiner, Eric Förster, Andreas Zahn, Wei-Nai Chen, Po-Hsiung Lin, Shuenn-Chin Chang, Maria Dolores Andrés Hernández, Pao-Kuan Wang, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Chem. Phys. Discuss., https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-788, https://doi.org/10.5194/acp-2021-788, 2021
Preprint withdrawn
Short summary
Short summary
By presenting an approach using EMeRGe-Asia airborne field measurements and surface observations, this study shows that the fraction of OH reactivity due to SO2-OH reaction has a significant correlation with the sulfate concentration. Approximately 30 % of sulfate is produced by SO2-OH reaction. Our results underline the importance of SO2-OH gas-phase oxidation in sulfate formation, and demonstrate that the method can be applied to other regions and under different meteorological conditions.
David J. Nash, George C. D. Adamson, Linden Ashcroft, Martin Bauch, Chantal Camenisch, Dagomar Degroot, Joelle Gergis, Adrian Jusopović, Thomas Labbé, Kuan-Hui Elaine Lin, Sharon D. Nicholson, Qing Pei, María del Rosario Prieto, Ursula Rack, Facundo Rojas, and Sam White
Clim. Past, 17, 1273–1314, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1273-2021, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-17-1273-2021, 2021
Short summary
Short summary
Qualitative evidence contained within historical sources provides an important record of climate variability for periods prior to the onset of systematic meteorological data collection. Before such evidence can be used for climate reconstructions, it needs to be converted to a quantitative format. A common approach is the generation of ordinal-scale climate indices. This review, written by members of the PAGES CRIAS working group, provides a global synthesis of the use of the index approach.
Hirofumi Ohyama, Isamu Morino, Voltaire A. Velazco, Theresa Klausner, Gerry Bagtasa, Matthäus Kiel, Matthias Frey, Akihiro Hori, Osamu Uchino, Tsuneo Matsunaga, Nicholas M. Deutscher, Joshua P. DiGangi, Yonghoon Choi, Glenn S. Diskin, Sally E. Pusede, Alina Fiehn, Anke Roiger, Michael Lichtenstern, Hans Schlager, Pao K. Wang, Charles C.-K. Chou, Maria Dolores Andrés-Hernández, and John P. Burrows
Atmos. Meas. Tech., 13, 5149–5163, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5149-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/amt-13-5149-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Column-averaged dry-air mole fractions of CO2 and CH4 measured by a solar viewing portable Fourier transform spectrometer (EM27/SUN) were validated with in situ profile data obtained during the transfer flights of two aircraft campaigns. Atmospheric dynamical properties based on ERA5 and WRF-Chem were used as criteria for selecting the best aircraft profiles for the validation. The resulting air-mass-independent correction factors for the EM27/SUN data were 0.9878 for CO2 and 0.9829 for CH4.
Related subject area
Subject: Atmospheric Dynamics | Archive: Historical Records | Timescale: Centennial-Decadal
Could old tide gauges help estimate past atmospheric variability?
Technical note: An improved methodology for calculating the Southern Annular Mode index to aid consistency between climate studies
Reassessing long-standing meteorological records: an example using the national hottest day in Ireland
Extreme historical droughts and floods in the Hanjiang River Basin, China, since 1426
Influence of warming and atmospheric circulation changes on multidecadal European flood variability
Assimilating monthly precipitation data in a paleoclimate data assimilation framework
Impact of different estimations of the background-error covariance matrix on climate reconstructions based on data assimilation
Causes of increased flood frequency in central Europe in the 19th century
A 305-year continuous monthly rainfall series for the island of Ireland (1711–2016)
Changes in the strength and width of the Hadley Circulation since 1871
Ecosystem effects of CO2 concentration: evidence from past climates
Paul Platzer, Pierre Ailliot, Bertrand Chapron, and Pierre Tandeo
Clim. Past, 20, 2267–2286, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-2267-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-2267-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
Old observations are necessary to understand the atmosphere. When direct observations are not available, one can use indirect observations, such as tide gauges, which measure the sea level in port cities. The sea level rises when local air pressure decreases and when wind pushes water towards the coast. Several centuries-long tide gauge records are available. We show that these can be complementary to direct pressure observations for studying storms and anticyclones in the 19th century.
Laura Velasquez-Jimenez and Nerilie J. Abram
Clim. Past, 20, 1125–1139, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1125-2024, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-20-1125-2024, 2024
Short summary
Short summary
The Southern Annular Mode (SAM) influences climate in the Southern Hemisphere. We investigate the effects of calculation method and data used to calculate the SAM index and how it influences the relationship between the SAM and climate. We propose a method to calculate a natural SAM index that facilitates consistency between studies, including when using different data resolutions, avoiding distortion of SAM impacts and allowing for more reliable results of past and future SAM trends.
Katherine Dooley, Ciaran Kelly, Natascha Seifert, Therese Myslinski, Sophie O'Kelly, Rushna Siraj, Ciara Crosby, Jack Kevin Dunne, Kate McCauley, James Donoghue, Eoin Gaddren, Daniel Conway, Jordan Cooney, Niamh McCarthy, Eoin Cullen, Simon Noone, Conor Murphy, and Peter Thorne
Clim. Past, 19, 1–22, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-1-2023, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-19-1-2023, 2023
Short summary
Short summary
The highest currently recognised air temperature (33.3 °C) ever recorded in the Republic of Ireland was logged at Kilkenny Castle in 1887. This paper reassesses the plausibility of the record using various methods such as inter-station reassessment and 20CRv3 reanalysis. As a result, Boora 1976 at 32.5 °C is presented as a more reliable high-temperature record for the Republic of Ireland. The final decision however rests with the national meteorological service, Met Éireann.
Xiaodan Zhang, Guoyu Ren, Yuda Yang, He Bing, Zhixin Hao, and Panfeng Zhang
Clim. Past, 18, 1775–1796, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-1775-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-1775-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Applying yearly drought and flood records from historical documents and precipitation data in the period of instrumental measurements, this study constructs a time series of extreme droughts and floods in the Hanjiang River Basin from 1426–2017 and analyzes the temporal and spatial characteristics of the extreme drought and flood event variations.
Stefan Brönnimann, Peter Stucki, Jörg Franke, Veronika Valler, Yuri Brugnara, Ralf Hand, Laura C. Slivinski, Gilbert P. Compo, Prashant D. Sardeshmukh, Michel Lang, and Bettina Schaefli
Clim. Past, 18, 919–933, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-919-2022, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-18-919-2022, 2022
Short summary
Short summary
Floods in Europe vary on time scales of several decades. Flood-rich and flood-poor periods alternate. Recently floods have again become more frequent. Long time series of peak stream flow, precipitation, and atmospheric variables reveal that until around 1980, these changes were mostly due to changes in atmospheric circulation. However, in recent decades the role of increasing atmospheric moisture due to climate warming has become more important and is now the main driver of flood changes.
Veronika Valler, Yuri Brugnara, Jörg Franke, and Stefan Brönnimann
Clim. Past, 16, 1309–1323, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-1309-2020, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-1309-2020, 2020
Short summary
Short summary
Data assimilation is becoming more and more important for past climate reconstructions. The assimilation of monthly resolved precipitation information has not been explored much so far. In this study we analyze the impact of assimilating monthly precipitation amounts and the number of wet days within an existing paleoclimate data assimilation framework. We find increased skill in the reconstruction, suggesting that monthly precipitation can constitute valuable input for future reconstructions.
Veronika Valler, Jörg Franke, and Stefan Brönnimann
Clim. Past, 15, 1427–1441, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1427-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1427-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
In recent years, the data assimilation approach was adapted to the field of paleoclimatology to reconstruct past climate fields by combining model simulations and observations.
To improve the performance of our paleodata assimilation system, we tested various techniques that are well established in weather forecasting and evaluated their impact on assimilating instrumental data and proxy records (tree rings).
Stefan Brönnimann, Luca Frigerio, Mikhaël Schwander, Marco Rohrer, Peter Stucki, and Jörg Franke
Clim. Past, 15, 1395–1409, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1395-2019, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1395-2019, 2019
Short summary
Short summary
During the 19th century flood frequency was high in central Europe, but it was low in the mid-20th century. This paper tracks these decadal changes in flood frequency for the case of Switzerland from peak discharge data back to precipitation data and daily weather reconstructions. We find an increased frequency in flood-prone weather types during large parts of the 19th century and decreased frequency in the mid-20th century. Sea-surface temperature anomalies can only explain a small part of it.
Conor Murphy, Ciaran Broderick, Timothy P. Burt, Mary Curley, Catriona Duffy, Julia Hall, Shaun Harrigan, Tom K. R. Matthews, Neil Macdonald, Gerard McCarthy, Mark P. McCarthy, Donal Mullan, Simon Noone, Timothy J. Osborn, Ciara Ryan, John Sweeney, Peter W. Thorne, Seamus Walsh, and Robert L. Wilby
Clim. Past, 14, 413–440, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-413-2018, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-413-2018, 2018
Short summary
Short summary
This work reconstructs a continuous 305-year rainfall record for Ireland. The series reveals remarkable variability in decadal rainfall – far in excess of the typical period of digitised data. Notably, the series sheds light on exceptionally wet winters in the 1730s and wet summers in the 1750s. The derived record, one of the longest continuous series in Europe, offers a firm basis for benchmarking other long-term records and reconstructions of past climate both locally and across Europe.
J. Liu, M. Song, Y. Hu, and X. Ren
Clim. Past, 8, 1169–1175, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-1169-2012, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-8-1169-2012, 2012
I. C. Prentice and S. P. Harrison
Clim. Past, 5, 297–307, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-5-297-2009, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-5-297-2009, 2009
Cited articles
Barriendos, M.: Climatic variations in the Iberian Peninsula during the late
Maunder Minimum (AD 1675–1715): an analysis of data from rogation
ceremonies, Holocene, 7, 105–111, https://doi.org/10.1177/095968369700700110, 1997.
Brázdil, R., Pfister, C., Wanner, H., Storch, H. V., and Luterbacher J.:
Historical climatology in Europe – the state of the art, Clim. Change, 70,
363–430, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-005-5924-1, 2005.
Brázdil, R., Dobrovolný, P., Trnka, M., Büntgen, U.,
Řezníčková, L., Kotyza, O., Valášek, H., and
Štěpánek, P.: Documentary and instrumental-based drought indices
for the Czech Lands back to AD 1501, Clim. Res., 70, 103–117, https://doi.org/10.3354/cr01380, 2016.
Brázdil, R., Kiss, A., Luterbacher, J., Nash, D. J., and Řezníčková, L.: Documentary data and the study of past droughts: a global state of the art, Clim. Past, 14, 1915–1960, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-14-1915-2018, 2018.
Brázdil, R., Dobrovolný, P., Trnka, M., Řezníčková, L., Dolák, L., and Kotyza, O.: Extreme droughts and human responses to them: the Czech Lands in the pre-instrumental period, Clim. Past, 15, 1–24, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1-2019, 2019.
Brönnimann, S., Martius, O., Rohr, C., Bresch, D., and Lin, K-HE.:
Historical weather data for climate risk assessment, Ann. NY Acad. Sci.,
1436, 121–137, https://doi.org/10.1111/nyas.13966, 2018.
Cao, S. J. (Ed.): History of Population in China, Vol. 5 Qing Dynasty, Fudan
University Press, Shanghai, China, 2001.
Chinese military history writing group: Chronology of China's Ancient Wars
Chinese People's Liberation Army Publishing House, Beijing, China, 1985.
CMA: Yearly charts of dryness/wetness in China for the last 500-year period
in Administration CM (ed.), Cartographic Publishing House, Beijing, China,
1981.
Cook, B. I., Smerdon J. E., Seager, R., and Coats, S.: Global warming and
21st century drying, Clim. Dynam., 43, 2607–2627, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00382-014-2075-y, 2014.
Cook, E. R., Anchukaitis, K. J., Buckley, B. M., D'Arrigo, R. D., Jacoby, G.
C., and Wright, W. E.: Asian Monsoon Failure and Megadrought During the Last
Millennium, Science, 328, 486–489, https://doi.org/10.1126/science.1185188, 2010.
Cook, E. R., Seager, R., Kushnir, Y., Briffa, K. R., Büntgen, U., Frank,
D., Krusic, P. J., Tegel, W., van der Schrier, G., Andreu-Hayles, L.,
Baillie, M., Baittinger, C., Bleicher, N., Bonde, N., Brown, D., Carrer, M.,
Cooper, R., Čufar, K., Dittmar, C., Esper, J., Griggs, C., Gunnarson,
B., Günther, B., Gutierrez, E., Haneca, K., Helama, S., Herzig, F.,
Heussner, K-U., Hofmann, J., Janda, P., Kontic, R., Köse, N., Kyncl, T.,
Levanič, T., Linderholm, H., Manning, S., Melvin, T.M., Miles, D.,
Neuwirth, B., Nicolussi, K., Nola, P., Panayotov, M., Popa, I., Rothe, A.,
Seftigen, K., Seim, A., Svarva, H., Svoboda, M., Thun, T., Timonen, M.,
Touchan, R., Trotsiuk, V., Trouet, V., Walder, F., Ważny, T., Wilson,
R., and Zang, C.: Old World megadroughts and pluvials during the Common Era,
Sci. Adv., 1, e1500561, https://doi.org/10.1126/sciadv.1500561, 2015.
Diodato, N. and Bellocchi, G.: Historical perspective of drought response in
central-southern Italy, Clim. Res., 49, 189–200,
https://doi.org/10.3354/cr01020, 2011.
Frank, D. C., Esper, J., Raible, C. C., Büntgen, U., Trouet, V.,
Stocker, B., and Joos, F.: Ensemble reconstruction constraints on the global
carbon cycle sensitivity to climate, Nature, 463, 527–530, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature08769, 2010.
Ge, Q., Zheng, J., Hao, Z., Liu, Y., and Li, M.: Recent advances on
reconstruction of climate and extreme events in China for the past 2000
years, J. Geogr. Sci., 26, 827–854, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11442-016-1301-4, 2016.
Ge, Q., Liu, H., Ma, X., Zheng, J., and Hao, Z.: Characteristics of
temperature change in China over the last 2000 years and spatial patterns of
dryness/wetness during cold and warm periods, Adv. Atmos. Sci., 34,
941–951, https://doi.org/10.1007/s00376-017-6238-8, 2017.
Guo, C. K.: Historical Report on the Kang-Qian Prosperity Period, China Yan
Shi Press, China, 2002.
Hao, Z., Zheng, J., Zhang, X., Liu, H., Li, M., and Ge, Q.: Spatial patterns
of precipitation anomalies in eastern China during centennial cold and warm
periods of the past 2000 years, Int. J. Climatol., 36, 467–475, https://doi.org/10.1002/joc.4367, 2016.
Hao, Z., Wu, M., Zheng, J., Chen, J., Zhang, X., and Luo, S.: Patterns in data of extreme droughts/floods and harvest grades derived from historical documents in eastern China during 801–1910, Clim. Past, 16, 101–116, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-16-101-2020, 2020.
Heim, R. R.: A review of twentieth-century drought indices used in the
United States, B. Am. Meteorol. Soc., 83, 1149–1166, https://doi.org/10.1175/1520-0477-83.8.1149, 2002.
Held, I. M. and Soden, B. J.: Robust responses of the hydrological cycle to
global warming, J. Climate, 19, 5686–5699, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI3990.1, 2006.
Huang, B., Li, G., Li, F., Kong, D., and Wang, Y.: The 1855 to 1859 locust
plague in China, Nat. Hazards, 95, 529–545, https://doi.org/10.1007/s11069-018-3498-2, 2019.
IPCC: Climate Change 2013: The Physical Science Basis. Contribution of
Working Group I to the Fifth Assessment Report of the Intergovernmental
Panel on Climate Change. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge, United
Kingdom and New York, NY, USA, https://doi.org/10.1017/CBO9781107415324, 2014.
Lin, K.-H. E., Wang, P. K., Lin, Y. H., and Wang, C. W.: Experiments on the
reconstruction methods and calibration of the climate series derived from
REACHES historical database of China in 1644–1911, EGU General Assembly,
Vienna, Austria, 7–12 April 2019, EGU2019-12868, 2019.
Lin, K. H. E., Wang, P.-K., Pai, P.-L., Lin, Y.-S., and Wang, C.-W.: REACHES Chinese Historical Climate Database Qing Dynasty Drought Series, available at: https://www.ncdc.noaa.gov/paleo/study/29472, last access: 21 May 2020.
Lin, N.: Social networks and status attainment, Annu. Rev. Soc., 25,
467–488, 1999.
Ljungqvist, F. C., Krusic, P. J., Sundqvist, H. S., Zorita, E.,
Brattström, G., and Frank, D.: Northern Hemisphere hydroclimate
variability over the past twelve centuries, Nature, 532, 94–98, https://doi.org/10.1038/nature17418, 2016.
McKee, T. B., Doesken, N. J., and Kleist, J.: The relationship of drought
frequency and duration to time steps, in: Preprints, 8th Conference on
Applied Climatology, 17–22 January 1993, Anaheim, CA, USA, 179–184, 1993.
Možný, M., Brázdil, R., Dobrovolný, P., Trnka, M.,
Potopová, V., Hlavinka, P., Bartošová, L., Zahradníček,
P., and Žalud, Z.: Drought reconstruction based on grape harvest dates
for the Czech Lands, 1499–2012, Clim. Res., 70, 119–132, https://doi.org/10.3354/cr01423, 2016.
Palmer, W. C.: Meteorological Drought, Office of Climatology Research Paper
45, U.S. Weather Bureau, Washington, USA, 1965.
Pei, Q., Lee, H. F., Zhang, D. D., and Fei, J.: Climate change, state capacity
and nomad-agriculturalist conflicts in Chinese history, Quatern. Int., 508,
36–42, https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quaint.2018.10.022, 2019.
Pfister, C.: Monthly temperature and precipitation in central Europe
1525–1979: quantifying documentary evidence on weather and its effects, in:
Climate Since A.D. 1500, edited by: Bradley, R. S. and Jones, P. D.,
Routledge, London, UK and New York, USA, 118–142, 1992.
Pfister, C., Brázdil, R., Glaser, R., Barriendos, M., Camuffo, D.,
Deutsch, M., Dobrovolný, P., Enzi, S., Guidoboni, E., Kotyza, O.,
Militzer, S., Rácz, L., and Rodrigo, F. S.: Documentary evidence on
climate in sixteenth-century Europe, Clim. Change, 43, 55–110, https://doi.org/10.1023/A:1005540707792, 1999.
Routson, C. C., Woodhouse, C. A., Overpeck, J. T., Betancourt, J. L., and
McKay N. P.: Teleconnected ocean forcing of western North American droughts
and pluvials during the last millennium, Quaternary Sci. Rev., 146, 238–250,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.quascirev.2016.06.017, 2016.
Schewe, J., Heinke, J., Gerten, D., Haddeland, I., Arnell, N. W., Clark, D.
B., Dankers, R., Eisner, S., Fekete, B. M., Colón-González, F. J.,
Gosling, S. N., Kim, H., Liu, X., Masaki, Y., Portmann, F. T., Satoh, Y.,
Stacke, T., Tang, Q., Wada, Y., Wisser, D., Albrecht, T., Frieler, K.,
Piontek, F., Warszawski, L., and Kabat, P.: Multimodel assessment of water
scarcity under climate change, P. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA, 111,
3245–3250, https://doi.org/10.1073/pnas.1222460110, 2014.
Schofield, M., Barker, R. J., Gelman, A., Cook, E. R., and Briffa, K. R.: A
Model-Based Approach to Climate Reconstruction Using Tree-Ring Data, J. Am.
Stat. Assoc., 111, 93–106, https://doi.org/10.1080/01621459.2015.1110524, 2016.
Scott, J.: Social Network Analysis, Sage Publications, London, UK, 2017.
Shen, C., Wang, W-C., Hao, Z., and Gong W.: Exceptional drought events over
eastern China during the last five centuries, Clim. Change, 85, 453–471,
https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-007-9283-y, 2007.
Shi, H., Wang, B., Cook, E. R., Liu, J., and Liu, F.: Asian Summer
Precipitation over the Past 544 Years Reconstructed by Merging Tree Rings
and Historical Documentary Records, J. Climate, 31, 7845–7861, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-18-0003.1, 2018.
Silverman, B. W.: Density Estimation for Statistics and Data Analysis,
Chapman and Hall/CRC Publications, New York, USA, 1986.
Song, J.: Changes in dryness/wetness in China during the last 529 years,
Int. J. Climatol., 20, 1003–1016, https://doi.org/10.1002/1097-0088(200007)20:9<1003::AID-JOC529>3.0.CO;2-S, 2000.
Stahle, D. W., Fye, F. K., Cook, E. R., and Griffin, R. D.: Tree-ring
reconstructed megadroughts over North America since A.D. 1300, Clim. Change,
83, 133–149, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-006-9171-x, 2007.
Stevenson, S., Overpeck, J. T., Fasullo, J., Coats, S., Parsons, L.,
Otto-Bliesner, B., Ault, T., Loope, G., and Cole, J.: Climate variability,
volcanic forcing, and last millennium hydroclimate extremes, J. Climate, 31,
4309–4327, https://doi.org/10.1175/JCLI-D-17-0407.1, 2018.
Su, Y., Liu, L., Fang, X. Q., and Ma, Y. N.: The relationship between climate change and wars waged between nomadic and farming groups from the Western Han Dynasty to the Tang Dynasty period, Clim. Past, 12, 137–150, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-12-137-2016, 2016.
Tan, P. H. and Liao, H. M.: Reconstruction of temperature, precipitation
and weather characteristics over the Yangtze River Delta Area in Ming
Dynasty, J. Geogr. Res., 57, 61–87, 2012.
Van Loon, A. F., Gleeson, T., Clark, J., Van Dijk, A. I. J. M., Stahl, K.,
Hannaford, J., Di Baldassarre, G., Teuling, A. J., Tallaksen, L. M.,
Uijlenhoet, R., Hannah, D. M., Sheffield, J., Svoboda, M., Verbeiren, B.,
Wagener, T., Rangecroft, S., Wanders, N., and Van Lanen, H. A. J.: Drought
in the Anthropocene, Nat. Geosci., 9, 89–91, https://doi.org/10.1038/ngeo2646, 2016.
Vicente-Serrano, S. M., Beguería, S., and López-Moreno, J. I.: A
multi-scalar drought index sensitive to global warming: The Standardized
Precipitation Evapotranspiration Index – SPEI, J. Climate, 23,
1696–1718, https://doi.org/10.1175/2009JCLI2909.1, 2010.
Wang, S. W. and Zhao, Z C.: Droughts and floods in China, 1470–1979, in:
Climate and History, edited by: Wigley, T. M. L., Ingram, M. J., and Farmer, G.,
Cambridge University Press, 271–288, 1981.
Wang, P. K.: Locust infestation and climate conditions of China in
historical time, 17th Conference on Agriculture & Forest Meteorology
and 7th Conference on Biometeorology & aerobiology, Scottsdale,
Arizona, 21–24 May 1985, American Metrological Society, 1985.
Wang, P. K., Lin, K-HE, Liao, Y. C., Liao, H. M., Lin, Y. S., Hsu, C. T.,
Hsu, S. M., Wan, C. W., Lee, S. Y., Fan, I. C., Tan, P. H., and Ting, T. T.:
Construction of the REACHES climate database based on historical documents
of China, Sci. Data, 5,180288, https://doi.org/10.1038/sdata.2018.288, 2018.
Wang, Y. C.: Qing Dynasty Grain Price Database, Institute of Modern History,
Academia Sinica, Taipei, 2009.
Wei, Z., Rosen, A. M., Fang, X., Su, Y., and Zhang, X.: Macro-Economic Cycles
Related to Climate change in Dynastic China, Quaternary Res., 83, 13–23,
https://doi.org/10.1016/j.yqres.2014.11.001, 2017.
White, S.: A comparison of drought information in early North American colonial documentary records and a high-resolution tree-ring-based reconstruction, Clim. Past, 15, 1809–1824, https://doi.org/10.5194/cp-15-1809-2019, 2019.
Yi, L., Yu, H., Ge, J., Lai, Z., Xu, X., Qin, L., and Peng, S.:
Reconstructions of annual summer precipitation and temperature in
north-central China since 1470 AD based on drought/flood index and tree-ring
records, Clim. Change, 110, 469–498, https://doi.org/10.1007/s10584-011-0052-6, 2012.
Zhang, D.: Supplement for the yearly chart of dryness/wetness in China for
the last 500 years, J. Appl. Meteorol. Sci., 14, 379–388, 2003.
Zhang, D.: A Compendium of Chinese Meteorological Records of the Last 3,000
Years, Phoenix House Ltd., Jiangsu, People's Republic of China, 2013 (first
edition published in 2004).
Zhang, J. and Crowley, T. J.: Historical climate records in China and
reconstruction of past climates, J. Climate, 2, 833–849, 1989.
Zheng, J., Wang, W. C., Ge, Q., Man, Z., and Zhang, P.: Precipitation
variability and extreme events in Eastern China during the past 1500 years,
Terrestrial, Terr. Atmos. Ocean. Sci., 17, 579–592, https://doi.org/10.3319/TAO.2006.17.3.579(A), 2006.
Zheng, J. Y., Ge, Q. S., Hao, Z. X., Liu, H. L., Man, Z., Hou, Y. J., and
Fang, X. Q.: Paleoclimatology proxy record in historical documents and
methods for reconstruction on climate change, J. Quaternary Sci., 34, 1186–1196,
2014.
Short summary
This study reconstructs drought chronologies of the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) based on Chinese documentary records from the REACHES database. In addition to drought records, ecological and societal records are also retrieved. Tests are performed to cross-check data and time series. Six severe drought periods are identified, and spatial patterns are revealed through multivariable analysis. Drought consequence networks are built highlighting human intervention affecting famine and social turmoil.
This study reconstructs drought chronologies of the Qing dynasty (1644–1911) based on Chinese...